John ingeaham



JOHN INGRAIIAM, OF NEW`YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO HIMSELF AND CHARLES E. L.

`Ves

HOLMES, OF SAME PLAGE, ASSIGNORS TO CHARLES E. L. HOLMES.

Letters Patent No. 84,492, dated-December 1, 1868.

IMPROVEMENT IN CLASPS FOR HOOP-SKIRTS To all whom fit may concern."

Be it known that I, JOHN INGRAHAM, of the city and State of' New York, have invented and made a certain new and useful Improvement in Clasps for Skirts; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the said invention, reference being had to the annexed drawing, making part of this specification, Whereiu- Figure 1 is a plan, and Figure 2 is a side view of a skirt-clasp; and Figure 3 is a sectional view, illustrating the peculiarity of the metal employed in the manufacture of said clasps. i

It has long been sought, among manufacturers of skirts, to obtain a clasp which would not tarnish on its exposed surface, nor discolor the cloth by corroding at its edges, and, at the same time, would possess suiiicient tenacity and iexibility to make a reliable article at a sufficiently low price to admit of general use.

Brass has been employed, but it is subject to changes of color, and corrosion. Brass coated with silvei` has been elnployed, but the surface is found to tarnish even more rapidly than brass, particularly on new goods while stored in buildings where gas is used, and so great is this discoloration that entire stocks of goods have been ruined. The common sheet-tin of commerce Vhas also been used, but, while the tin retains its color, the

site toughness and elasticity for the intended use.

The simple coating of a zinc clasp lwith a thin Wash of tin will not add to it the required tenacity.

All these modes of making clasps have proven, praetically, to be unsatisfactory, and it was only after a l series of experiments I found that Va clasp cut out of a compound sheet of metal, formed of alternate layers of tin and zinc, would overcome all the objections, and produce a clasp ofthe desired tenacity, and which would not change color, or injure the tapes, either by discoloration, or by sharp, harsh cutting-edges*7 formed by the burr left by the dies in their manufacture.

The skirt-clasp made of tliis material is a new article of manufacture, The zinc body, not heilig injuriously a'ected by dampness, does not discolor the skirt, and, the surface being of tin, the color ofthe clasp is maintained without tarnishing, and without perceptible wear. Hence, skirts made in this manner are very handsome and durable, and the zinc forms a suiiiciently rigid body to make a firm connectionbetween the tapes or vertical connections and the hoops. l

The sheet-metal employed by me is prepared 'by rolling. I lay a sheet of tin upon a plat'eof zinc, the tin being oi' the proper thickness in proportion to the zinc, and, if desired, the tin may be placed on both sides of the zinc. The metal is then reduced by rollingl it down to the propel` thickness, and from this the clasp is cutout by suitable dies.

-In fig. 3, the two thicknesses of tin are .shown in red, and the thickness of zinc in blue colors.

1What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, as a new article of manufacture, is-

A clasp for skeleton skirts, cut out of a compound sheet of metal, formed of zinc and tin, in the manner described.

ture, this 9th day of July, 1868.

JOHN INGRAHAM. Vitnesses J, I. Pneu, J om: BOUTON.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my signa- 

